[46.06] [FeII] Narrow Band Imaging of Supernova Remnants in the Magellanic Clouds

M. Tavarez, R. C. Smith (U Michigan), R. Elston (CTIO)

Optical, radio and X-ray emission from supernova remnants (SNRs)
has been used extensively to study the properties of SNRs, and as
such, much is known about their general characteristics in these
wavebands. However, surprisingly little work has been done in the
near infrared. The early work of Oliva et al. (1989, Aamp;A, 214, 307)
suggested that SNRs are generally bright in the emission of [FeII],
although this conclusion was based upon observations of only a few
very bright SNRs. In order to better define the general characteristics
of the [FeII] emission of SNRs, we have undertaken a survey of 35 SNRs
in the Magellanic Clouds. These represent a well defined sample with
a large range of intrinsic properties, all at the same distance.
We present [FeII] fluxes of 1.64\mum emission and discuss correlations
of SNR properties observed at other wavelengths with the [FeII] flux.
In addition, we discuss the feasibility of using [FeII] flux as an
indicator of supernova rates in distant galaxies.